NFL Mr. Irrelevant celebration set for mid-June

Former NFL receiver Paul Salata, right, announces the 254th overall pick of the NFL Draft, Saturday, April 27, 2013 at Radio City Music Hall in New York. South Carolina tight end Justice Cunningham was picked by the Indianapolis Colts to conclude the 2013 draft.CRAIG RUTTLE, AP

NEWPORT BEACH – Irrelevant Week XXXVIII, an event in Newport Beach celebrating the athlete picked last in the NFL Draft, will be June 18-22, Irrelevant Week Chief Executive Officer Melanie Fitch said Monday.

Irrelevant Week honors the last pick in the NFL Draft in a "Celebration of the Underdog." South Carolina tight end Justice Cunningham was drafted last (254th overall) in the NFL Draft Saturday by the Indianapolis Colts to earn the distinction.

A major change for Irrelevant Week this year includes dropping the traditional Arrival Party on the first day of the weeklong festivities and moving it to the final day with a "Welcome to Newport Beach" party, during which Mr. Irrelevant will be showered with gifts, proclamations and well-wishers.

Cunningham is scheduled to arrive June 18 and be greeted by a cheering crowd at John Wayne Airport, then be honored the following evening at the All-Star Lowsman Trophy Banquet at the Newport Beach Marriott Hotel & Spa. Mr. Irrelevant is awarded the Lowsman Trophy, a cousin to the famous Heisman Trophy, given annually to the top college football player in the country. The Lowsman Trophy is a replica of the Heisman, but only the player is fumbling the ball.

On June 20, Mr. Irrelevant will be interviewed on the NFL Network and later that day sail in the Irrelevant Week Regatta in Newport Harbor. On June 21, he will enjoy a day at Disneyland and later help drag the infield dirt with the grounds crew between innings during an Angels-Pirates game at Angel Stadium.

The "Welcome to Newport Beach" Party will be held Saturday, June 22, with the location still to be determined. Past arrival parties have been held at the Newport Dunes Resort, but resort management reportedly cannot afford to give up a busy summer Saturday in order to accommodate an Irrelevant Week party. Fitch said Newport Aquatic Center is a possible host site.

"We're still looking, but we should know of a location soon for the 'Welcome to Newport Beach' party," said Fitch, daughter of Irrelevant Week founder Paul Salata, who announced the final pick of the NFL Draft in New York City.

Salata, 86, is a former NFL player, Hollywood movie actor and entrepreneur. A longtime resident of Linda Isle, his financial empire came in the form of sewer pipes, sand and gravel, and other construction supplies just in time for the booming growth in homes and freeways in Southern California in the 1950s and '60s.

Salata always had a big heart for the underdog and started Irrelevant Week in 1976 because "when I played, I was sort of a champion of the guy who never gets recognized," he said in a 1978 Sports Illustrated story that never made it to print. "I always said if I ever could afford it, I was going to do something for the guy you never heard of."

Irrelevant Week XXXVIII, which uses Roman numerals to count its years like the Super Bowl, will honor Cunningham, a "6-foot-3, 258-pounder with dreadlocks who likes hip hop music, hot wings and he can swim," Melanie Fitch said. "Yes, we ask each Mr. Irrelevant if they can swim, because one year we had surfing and other water activities planned for Mr. Irrelevant, but he couldn't swim."

Cunningham, who caught 49 passes for 544 yards and one touchdown in his four-year career at South Carolina, "also has a brother named Power, a sister named Promise and another brother named Sincere," Fitch said.

After Justice is served for Irrelevant Week XXXVIII, the former Gamecock tight end will report to the NFL's rookie symposium in Ohio on June 23.

Irrelevant Week, which is headquartered in Newport Beach, raises money for charity each year. This year's beneficiary is the Special Olympics Southern California.

Former NFL receiver Paul Salata, right, announces the 254th overall pick of the NFL Draft, Saturday, April 27, 2013 at Radio City Music Hall in New York. South Carolina tight end Justice Cunningham was picked by the Indianapolis Colts to conclude the 2013 draft. CRAIG RUTTLE, AP
FILE - In this Oct. 27, 2012, file photo, South Carolina tight end Justice Cunningham, right, is hit by Tennessee's Byron Moore during the first half of an NCAA college football game at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia, S.C. Cunningham was selected by the Indianapolis Colts with the last pick, 245th overall, in the NFL Draft on Saturday, April 27, 2013. RICHARD SHIRO, AP
Former NFL receiver Paul Salata, right, announces the 254th overall pick of the NFL Draft, Saturday, April 27, 2013 at Radio City Music Hall in New York. South Carolina tight end Justice Cunningham was picked by the Indianapolis Colts to conclude the 2013 draft. CRAIG RUTTLE, AP

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